Chase the Devil
by Vegas Nolan
Summary: She hated cloudy days like this, with rain always threatening but refusing to deliver. Boston summers could get awfully humid, and Emma tugged at the black sling holding her left arm to her body. The canvas was clammy with moisture, and she refused to even consider the condition of the cast underneath.


She hated cloudy days like this, with rain always threatening but refusing to deliver. Boston summers could get awfully humid, and Emma tugged at the black sling holding her left arm to her body. The canvas was clammy with moisture, and she refused to even consider the condition of the cast underneath. The traffic light changed and Emma leaned on her car's horn with her good hand, cursing to herself as the ancient sedan in front of her finally got the message and made a right turn. She stepped on the gas, sighing thankfully as her Chevelle's powerful engine responded and air began to flow through the open windows. Emma loved driving with the windows down, despite the fact that the air outside was still warm and humid. After serving Neal's five-year sentence, seeing open spaces and feeling a breeze on her skin would never be taken for granted again. Even the smallest things seemed like blessings.

Emma partially owed her current semi-fortunate status to her ex, and enough time had passed to make her ambivalent about his legacy. In some ways, like her job, she was slightly better off. No more stealing from corner stores to stave off hunger, or sleeping in a Volkswagen. Emma made enough now to afford a nice apartment on the North side, not to mention her recent car upgrade. Of course, it had taken her a couple of months after her release to find a place that would employ a recently paroled felon, but she was past all that now. She was a successful professional, making it on her own.

Emma's classic four-door car lurched to a stop in front of a brick mini-mall, and Emma didn't stop to roll up the windows. She wouldn't be inside long, and everyone from the surrounding few blocks recognized the faded blue paint and slightly rusted patch panels anyway. She slammed the car door and knocked a discarded Coors Light bottle out of the way with her boot, impatient to get inside. A bell tinkled on the front door of the shop to the left of Emma's car, but she didn't look up.

A blonde man leaned out of the opening door, a smirk on his face. The sign overhead read "Whale's Chiropractic and Massage." The blonde man yelled, "Complimentary massages on Tuesdays, Emma!"

Emma wrenched the door of the neighboring business open with her right arm, but didn't look over. She responded, "You say that every day, you piece of shit sheep fucker!"

As she strode through the door of Leroy's 24 Hour Bail Bonds, Whale thrust his hips in her general direction. Emma paused briefly to flip him the bird, eyes still laser focused on the veneer paneling of Ruby's counter.

Ruby shot Emma a smile from the reception area as she talked an older woman wearing hair curlers through the bond agreement paperwork. As usual, Ruby had on a pencil skirt, patent leather heels, and a sleeveless vintage-style tank that made ample display of the tattoos covering both arms from shoulder to wrist. A middle-aged man in a cheap suit sat on the vinyl sofa to the side of the desk, looking down at his laceless shoes. Emma eyed him surreptitiously as she passed by, trying to get a sense as to whether he would show up for his future court appearance. The man's hair was greasy and he nervously spun a pinky ring on his little finger, but didn't look away when Emma met his eyes. The left side of his face was swollen and bruised. _Future skip_, she thought.

Emma lifted the trap door in the counter that led to the back half of the office and walked through, then closed it with a bang. Leroy stuck his head out of his office door, hustling out when he saw that it was Emma. He closed the office door behind him, and Emma scowled. "What do you want, Leroy? I'm not supposed to come back until next week."

Leroy scowled back with no less ferocity. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I know that you said-"

"No fucking way. The doctor said that I needed to be off bail bonds enforcement duty for two months!"

Leroy held his hands out, palms up, taking his voice down a notch. "It's a tough situation, Emma. You're the best, and there's no one else I can ask."

Emma's bullshit meter pinged. "What aren't you telling me? What's wrong?" Her eyes darted to the closed office door behind her boss, and he stepped as if to block her from seeing it_. Fat chance_, she thought. Leroy wasn't even five feet tall.

He walked a few steps closer. "Emma, come on. You know we've had a lot of business lately and you can't handle all these skips by yourself-"

Eyes wide, Emma jabbed an accusatory finger at the short man. "I can handle damn near all of the skips, and you know it." Leroy looked unimpressed with her argument. Emma sighed and ran her good hand over her face. She tried a different tack. "What about Mary Margaret and David? When they aren't playing grab-ass, they do their part."

Leroy shook his head sadly and approached Emma, looking at her directly. "David called yesterday. Mary Margaret finally copped to being three months pregnant, but didn't want him to tell me- she still wanted to be out catching scumbags." His head shot to the right, looking around Emma toward the guy on the couch, who was picking his teeth with a fingernail. "No offense, man," Leroy hollered in his general direction.

The man's mother looked up and pushed the papers back towards Ruby. "None taken. Let's go, Greg, you can give me a ride to bingo." Her son didn't stop picking his teeth, but followed the woman out the door. Leroy dropped his hand from Emma's elbow and stared dejectedly toward the street. Emma could hear the neon Open sign buzzing faintly in the barred front window.

Ruby shrugged at Emma and propped a hip against the front counter. "Can you blame Mary Margaret for not being celibate? David's biceps are bigger than Leroy's whole body." She smiled wistfully.

"I can hear you," Leroy growled.

Ruby rolled her eyes. "All I'm saying is, I would never leave the house if I were her."

Leroy groaned, "That's the problem! David won't let Mary Margaret leave the house and risk getting injured, and no one can take her place. You know Mary Margaret did all the heavy lifting with their skips. David's great, but without her, he'd be useless."

"Don't send a hot man to do a violent woman's job," Ruby smirked.

"Did I hear someone mention needing a man?" The accented voice startled Emma, it's tone low and nearly directly against her ear.

Emma's heart beat double time, and she whirled around. She gasped, "Buddy, sneaking up on me is a good way to get yourself killed!"

The dark-haired stranger slouched against the wall partitioning Leroy's office, and his blue eyes scanned Emma from boots to breasts. "I don't quite see where you could be keeping a weapon, love."

Emma suddenly felt underdressed in her jeans and tank. She nearly crossed her arms over her chest, but caught the impulse in time. The man noticed her quick movement and winked at her. Without missing a beat, Emma snarled, "Who says I need a weapon?"

Ruby squeaked, then laughed. Leroy stepped between Emma and the stranger, his hands out to keep the peace. He said calmly, "Emma, meet Killian Jones. Killian, this is Emma Swan."

Killian bowed slightly, and Emma glared at him over Leroy's head. "Hell, no! You'd better not be expecting me-"

For a small man, Leroy had the ability to make a lot of noise. He thundered, "I _expect_ you to show Killian the ropes, how to track and turn in skips."

Emma protested, "I am not about to babysit some slimy new guy who doesn't know his ass from his elbow!"

Killian laughed, a deep sound that might have been appealing if it didn't make Emma want to punch him in the face. "All your bloody protesting…" he said. Even his accent was irritating. ""Apparently, you can't trust yourself alone with me."

Emma inhaled and opened her mouth to say something nasty, but Leroy grabbed her good arm and dragged her towards the front counter. He pleaded quietly, "Emma, you can do this. You're my most effective bonds agent, and I gave you a chance when no one else would touch you. I hired you because you said you were willing to interact with hardened convicts, petty thieves, and other disgusting bail jumpers. Killian can't be any worse."

Emma easily yanked her arm from Leroy's grasp. "No way. You hired me to quickly haul the fuckers in to the cops, not to train them and work alongside them! I didn't sign on for quality time with these assholes."

Leroy hissed, "Then let's make a deal- you give Killian one week to learn the ropes, and I let you keep your job. Money from any skips you guys bring in can be split equally. After a week, you'll be out of the sling and back on your own. No long-term commitments implied." Emma's boss stared her down, and she clenched her jaw tightly.

Leroy was right, as much as she hated to admit it. She got a lot of satisfaction from this job, where she made her own hours, joked around with Ruby, and made enough money to have adult things like a savings account and health insurance. Plus, she liked Leroy. He had never treated her like a subordinate or asked her for a favor before. The shorter man saw the faint beginnings of acquiescence in Emma's eyes and smiled. He clapped his hands once and walked back towards his office. "Great, then it's settled. Ruby, give Emma those new files, would you?"

Ruby picked up a stack of manila folders and approached Emma, graceful even in heels. "This is only up until last week, so we're pretty far behind. Um…" Ruby awkwardly paused, realizing that there was no way for Emma to take the files one-handed.

Killian moved in before Emma could blink and took the pile from Ruby. "Just let me get these, love, and we can be on our way."

Ruby looked past him and shot a meaningful look at Emma. "How nice of you," Ruby said.

Killian also met Emma's eyes. He rumbled, "I'm always a gentleman."

Emma turned and opened the trap door in the counter. She snapped, "Move your ass before I leave you here, Lucky Charms."

She heard Killian follow behind her, and Leroy yelled from his office, "You're off to a great start!"

Emma had already started the engine by the time Killian slid into the passenger seat. She toed the accelerator and took satisfaction in the angry rev of the motor. Her Chevelle would never guilt trip her for any favors. Emma held out her hand and looked at Killian expectantly. He grinned and passed her a folder.

Emma opened the folder and looked down at the pages. "Don't think this means we're friends. I'm not taking my eyes off you for a minute."

Killian chuckled. He leaned towards her and said, "Oh, I would despair if you did."

Emma rolled her eyes. She closed the folder, pushing it into the side of Killian's face before shifting the car into reverse. "Buckle up. We're going to the south side."


End file.
